[MLS] Thursday night's Western Conference doubleheader on ESPN2 Thursday night gave us a chance to see how Los Angeles, Chivas USA, Houston and Real Salt Lake -- all of which believe they are serious challengers for the league title -- stack up in the early going. Three teams have a ... Read the whole story

[MLS] Brian Ching, who overcame injury problems, to put himself back in contention for a berth on the U.S. World Cup team, left the Houston Dynamo's game against Real Salt Lake in Thursday night with a hamstring strain. It remains to be seen how serious the injury and whether it ... Read the whole story

[MAKING A LIST] Major League Soccer announced plans to expand its Designated Player program, offering new mechanisms for teams to acquire star players. But up until now, MLS's Designated Players have lacked staying power. Read the whole story

[SCOREBOARD] Only five games will be played in Week 2 of Major League Soccer. For summaries of Thursday's Houston-Real Salt Lake and Los Angeles-Chivas USA games and viewing information on Saturday's three games ... Read the whole story

[OFF THE POST] An English referee whose Sunday league game was called off amid accusations that he was inebriated has denied that booze was the problem. "I hadn&rsquo;t been drinking,&rdquo; referee Steve Hurrell told the Scarborough Evening News. "I'm currently on some strong pain-killing tablets which make me go dizzy ... Read the whole story

"Coming out at halftime was the most embarrassing and disappointing thing that has ever happened in my career, and this is my 11th year. I don't think it was warranted. ... When a team loses, there always has to be a scapegoat, and that was me [last season]. And unfortunately it happened in that first game again." -- Midfielder Bobby Convey of the San Jose Earthquakes, which lost their season opener last weekend, 3-0, to Real Salt Lake. Convey turned pro at age 16 in MLS, played for the USA at the 2006 World Cup, and returned from a five-year ...More